If there is one subject we are hearing a lot about it is stress and how it affects our health and wellness.

When stress becomes an overwhelming burden on the spirit, mind, and body stress can and will manifest in sickness and disease.

Part of the issue is we are bombarded with addition types of stress that just weren’t present until the industrial revolution and the introduction of modern technologies.

Now I’m not saying let’s go back to the stone age, however I am suggesting that we all accept responsibility for our health and implement lifestyle changes so we are taking care not to subject ourselves to so much exposure.

Let’s look briefly at the body and what happens as stress is put upon it. We will keep this general and simple.

We have an autonomic nervous system, which is then broken down into the sympathetic, and parasympathetic nervous systems. It is the sympathetic nervous system that responds to stress by stimulating the adrenals to release cortisol, epinephrine and nor epinephrine among others. These hormones cause the body to shunt blood from the digestive and other systems that deal with growth and repair all of which are controlled by the parasympathetic nervous system. In a fight or flight response blood is pushed to the muscles, there is an increase in heart rate, the liver is triggered to push glucose into the blood stream for energy, and raise metabolism.

Now in a true case of fight or flight you would be using your body to run away or fight. This is a perfectly designed system for self preservation.

Now ask yourself how many times when you are feeling stressed are you in that position. Hardly ever right?

Maybe you’re severely stressed by a work deadline, or a relationship breakup, or lack of money. It doesn’t matter what the stimulus of the stress, the body still responds the same way. Which is to stimulate a fight or flight response.

This is so engrained in our genetics that no matter how we rationalize the situation, it will happen.

You have two options in my view to alleviate this reaction.

Learn how your mind works so you are aware of how you perceive what causes you stress and change your perceptions, and also do your best to minimize the amount of stress you are exposed to.

At this point I bet most of you are thinking about what we will call mental / emotional stress. Of course

mental / emotional stress is one of the big ones, and holly cow does it cause a lot of health challenges for people over the long run.

There are several other types of stress that I want to make you aware of.

Before we go into this I want you too remember that your body doesn’t know the difference between any of these stressors. Your body only knows one way to respond to them all. Fight or flight. I also want you too understand that your body summates or accumulates stress. This means that all the stress put upon the spirit, mind, and body goes into one big bucket and if the stressors over flow the bucket your body is under constant fight or flight, even when you are sleeping.

Many people are living their lives in a state of stress overflow and don’t even realize it. It can cause illness, disease, weight gain, physical pain in the body, and the list is endless. The point to remember is our bodies are a perfect reflection of our health or lack there of. Stress is a major component to our health.

So here goes. These are the stressors we are all being subjected to on a daily basis.

Read through and make a checklist of what you are exposing yourself to on a daily basis, and think about you bucket filling up.

• Physical Stress such as poor posture, poor sleep, exercise whether over-training or under-training, injuries and surgeries.
• Chemical stress from drugs and alcohol, hormones, antibiotics, chlorine, fluoride, aluminum, additives in cleaning agents, detergents, cosmetics, and hygiene products. These can be taken in through the skin, orally, and through breathing.

• Nutritional stress can come from too much or too little food, poor quality of food or the wrong foods for you.

• Electromagnetic stress such as television / computers, Mobile phones, electronic devices, power lines & towers.
• Thermal stress includes too much sun exposure, or severe body temperature deregulation in the form of hypothermia, or hyperthermia.
• Emotional / Mental stress you’re your thoughts, your values & beliefs, from relationships, money, lack of safety and security, overworking.

Can you see how easily we can become over-inundated with stressors on a daily basis? Multiply those by weeks, months, and years and you can begin to understand the effects it can and will have on your spirit, mind, and body.

Learn to become a “stress reduction expert” as my mentor Paul Chek states.

Do your best to limit your exposure to the outer environmental stressors and begin let go of your past beliefs and values that are causing you to mental / emotional stress.

I would love to help you begin this journey of health and wellness.

I wish for all of you Vibrant Health!

David Fresilli – Holistic Health Practitioner

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